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Roads

Road Maintenance

The County takes care of over 2,000 km of roads, most with a gravel surface. Fourteen grader routes ensures timely and effective maintenance. The skilled operators assigned to each of these areas will generally take about two weeks to make the rounds of their route during the summer months, based on Policy R 20.

Dead-end roads to residences may be maintained, as specified in Policy R3. Undeveloped road allowances may be maintained as a bladed trail for access to farm and ranch lands or alternatively, graveling the ruts of grassed-in road allowances may be cost shared 50%, as noted in Policy R9. To alleviate snow drifting conditions and increase agricultural utilization of roadsides, Policy R6 details the backsloping process. If an undeveloped road is required to be upgraded, Policy R10 is used to establish the road standard.

In some high traffic areas, a dust control coating is applied to reduce daily maintenance costs while enhancing quality of life. However, these roads come at a much higher cost than gravel roads. In very high traffic areas and places where commercial traffic warrants a high grade road, hot-mix pavement is applied.

Bridges, cattle guards (Texas gates) and sign maintenance are also tasks under the roads portfolio.

Road Construction

Building and upgrading roads takes place throughout the summer. A high grade gravel road will cost about $100,000 per mile ($62,000/km) and council typically approves about 12 miles each year. In addition, an oil or dust control surface will add another $100,000 and hot-mix pavement will cost about $1,000,000 per mile.

Council has established a Five Year Strategic Plan for road construction. This plan establishes which roads will be a priority for upgrading each year. This plan is reviewed by Council on an annual basis to ensure that it still meets the needs of the municipality.

Financial cost sharing of construction of roads to new residences in the agricultural area of the County is available. Policy R14 has the details.

Private Dust Control

Private dust control adjacent to single farmsteads or country residences is available for an annual fee of $315.00. A 200 metre strip of oil and gravel is mixed on site, packed and then maintained indefinitely. Multi-parcel country residential subdivision residents can request hot-mix pavement only, at a cost of $500/year for 25 years. Policy R1 and Policy R13 have the details.

Road Bans & Special Permits

An Order By The Road Ban Committee For Cypress County, Defining Maximum Allowable Weights Permitted On Certain Cypress County Roads: Order No. 2014 – 03

Pursuant to County Bylaw 2018/13 and the authority granted by the Minister under the Traffic Safety Act, the Road Ban Committee orders that effective: Monday, June 16, 2014, at 7:00 a.m. the permitted percentage of allowable axle weights for the following roads are listed below.

Banned Road

Location or Description

Range Road 40

From

Highway 1

To

Township Road 114

75

%

Township Road 202

From

Highway 41

To

Range Road 12

75

%

Township Road 132

From

Highway 41

To

Range Road 30

75

%

Eagle Butte Road

From

Township Road 100

To

Thelma Road

75

%

Black & White Trail

From

Township Road 120 south

To

Cypress County Boundary

75

%

Box Springs Road

From

City of Medicine Hat Bundary

To

Township Road 150

75

%

Range Road 62

From

Township Road 120

To

Township Road 114

75

%

Sextant Hill on Thelma Road

From

Range Road 33a (Eagle's Nest Ranch Access)

To

1 km East of Range Road 33a

50

%

Range Road 63

From

Highway 3

To

Township Road 114

75

%

Range Road 70

From

Highway 523

To

Paramatta Estates

75

%

Range Road 74

From

Highway 523

To

Township Road 121

75

%

Range Road 80

From

Highway 1

To

Township Road 150

75

%

Range Road 103

From

Highway 544

To

Cypress County Boundary

75

%

Township Road 114

From

Eagle Butte Road

To

Black & White Trail

75

%

Township Road 114

From

Range Road 62

To

Range Road 63

75

%

Range Road 51

From

Highway 41A

To

Township Road 124

75

%

Township Road 121A

From

Range Road 63

To

0.8 km East

75

%

Hamlet of Suffield

From

Ellis Avenue – From 3rd Street to Highway No. 884 – NO TRUCKS

NOTE : 100% - Means No Road Ban In Effect

This Order Rescinds Highway Order No. 2014 – 02 and Shall Remain In Effect Until Further Notice.

To ensure the road system is not damaged by heavy trucks, a road ban system with oversize load Special Permits has been established, under the authority of the Road Ban Bylaw. Commercial carriers can get permits from RoaData Services Ltd using their toll free contacts: Service Rig: 1.888.830.7623, Heavy Haul: 1 (888) 444-9288, Drilling Rig / Well Servicing: 1 (888) 730-3745.

Local permits are available through the County office for agricultural products.

Snow Plowing

Trucks are only used on hard surface roads, mainly consisting of hills, arterial and collector roads, such as Eagle Butte Road and Township Road 120. Once these priority roads are cleared and sanded, the trucks will enter country residential subdivisions and lastly the hamlets. Hamlet roads will only be plowed if there is somewhere to push the snow, such as a ditch.

Graders are the machine of choice for gravel roads. Based on Policy R 20, the County practice is to wait until there is an accumulation of 4" (10 cm) of snow before plowing as any less may result in too much gravel being removed from the ridges that naturally form from the traffic. The first priority for the graders is school bus routes. Then feeder roads are done, such as the Bull Trail south of Irvine. The last roads to be done are those leading up to individual farm residence driveways. After a general snow storm, it will take about three days before all roads have been plowed. In the interest of operator and public safety, equipment typically only operates during daylight hours.

Streetlight Repair Reporting

FortisAlberta has formally launched their new Streetlight Repair Map. With this map Cypress County residents can view streetlights in our area and request a repair online within minutes. This would not include Desert Blume, Dunmore and Veinerville which are serviced by the City of Medicine Hat. The map was designed to be user- friendly and simple to use. Once a streetlight repair request is submitted, a service order is automatically generated to facilitate repairs.

If residents are interested in learning how to use the new Streetlight Repair Map, view FortisAlberta’s online video tutorial.

Signs

All roads signs are placed according to Canadian Standards. They indicate potential hazards so that drivers can take appropriate action to stay safe.

The road naming system in the rural area is based on Township Roads running east-west and Range Roads running north-south. A few roads are named due to their curving nature. The addressing system is also based on this road network.

In hamlets, roads are named or numbered, primarily following a pattern established when the area was settled.

Reports of damaged, broken or missing signs are welcome and can be done through the Submit A Concern/Request form under E-Service Request.

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Fire Ban

Current Fire Rating

Fire Control Order Rescinded

Effective 1200hrs, 02 November

Recent precipitation throughout south eastern Alberta has enabled Cypress County to lift the current fire
control order.

Fire Permits are once again being issued. Extreme caution should always be maintained
and all permitted burning must be supervised by an adult at all times. The
lifting of this order does not impact any existing fire control orders issued
by cities and towns in the area, nor does it affect any fire bans issued for
provincial parks. To see a list of the fire bans currently in effect across
Alberta visit www.albertafirebans.ca

Any person or persons who willfully sets an open fire is responsible for
controlling it at all times. The applicant is solely responsible for any and
all damages and the applicant further agrees to indemnify and hold Cypress
County harmless against any and all losses or damages which may arise.

For further information, contact the Cypress County office at (403) 526-2888.